Plumbing problem...howling shower

glennster · Feb 27, 2013

Ok this is weird. Have a tub shower unit. Has a moen 1200 cartridge type valve and has the pull up diverter on the end of the tub faucet to activate the shower. Well the thing started howling when you switch tomthe shower. It starts out as kind of a whistle, then get louder and louder till the pipes start shaking. It gets really loud. I changed out the shower head and also put a new cartridge in, neither has helped. If you fiddle with the faucet, sometimes it will stop. What the heck is going on. Its an older tub shower.

da.bees · Feb 28, 2013

Something isn't tight causing a vibration similar to blowing on the edge of a sheet of paper. Since you change the cartidge,it would appear the diverter is vibrating. I'm not familar with all the parts in that facuet but I figure a gearhead can spot the ill fit while it's disassembled. Were it not a cartridge,I would say with certainty the seat or washer was loose in 99% of this problem.
Holloween is too far off for it to be "hanted". :shock:

cannonball · Feb 28, 2013

change diverter valve....

Anonymous-0 · Feb 28, 2013

I would replace the tub spout..not much in the diverter to go bad.

Anonymous-0 · Feb 28, 2013

My Moen does it too. Sons Moen does it. Don't buy Moen if you don't want it to Moan.

I've tried a different shower head a different cartridge and the only thing that works is to change the position of the valve to allow more water through the valve. It seems to create a standing wave between the valve and the shower head and just wants to scream. In my opinion those are junk valves.

JF in MI · Feb 28, 2013

Strange. I had a similar thing years ago. When the pump would repressureize the system from any bathroom use the pipes would howl like a train whistle. No matter what I did or checked, as the months went by it would get louder (I mean it sounded like a train coming through the house). Eventually it slowly started to go away and never came back. I suspect it was a calcium deposit of just the right shape that continued to change shape until it wasn't a "whistle" any more.

Jim

Chris(WA) · Feb 28, 2013

Bleed your shock arrestors. That may take care of it.

Leroy · Feb 28, 2013

I have some Moen units in my house, I did not want them but my wife that manages the plumming department in the store thinks they are a good brand. I say mone is what you will do as long as you have them, I hate them and would junk them but she likes them.

glennster · Feb 28, 2013

i'll try changing the diverter and see if it helps. its just a little flap on the very end of the tub spout with a knob on top to pull up. i tried holding it at different angles, didnt help. the sound seems to be coming from the cartridge/valve assembly.

Ted in NE-OH · Feb 28, 2013

My tub faucet does this at certain pump pressures, it is in the faucet and I live with it as the faucet works Ok

Plumbing problem...howling shower

glennster

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da.bees

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cannonball

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Anonymous-0

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Anonymous-0

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JF in MI

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Chris(WA)

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Leroy

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glennster

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Ted in NE-OH

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